The stands were filled with anxious murmurs as Shun, Kenta, Ren, and Shimizu settled in to watch the next game of the fifth round. The reason for the murmurs was that one of the teams playing in the upcoming game was Kasuga Junior High School, the team that qualified for the Kanto tournament along with Hokuto last year.
Shun adjusted his cap, focused, as the Kasuga Junior High School team entered the field. From what he knew, Kasuga only lost to the Kanto tournament runner-up last year, but since they didn't make it to the finals, they had to play in the Tokyo tournament this year to earn a spot.
Since they were in middle school, and every year the older players graduated and left the team, last year's Tokyo tournament champion title wasn't enough to define Kasuga as a powerhouse this year. But from what Shun knew, most of Kasuga's best players last year were second-year students, so it was expected that they would be even stronger this year.
Shun wasn't the only one paying close attention to Kasuga's players. Ren and Kenta were also very focused. They knew well how strong a team had to be to qualify for the Kanto tournament, and if Kasuga were their opponent in the sixth round, this was a great opportunity to prepare and analyze the opponent.
As soon as the first batter of the opposing team stepped into the box, Kasuga's ace, Shota Imai, positioned himself on the mound. Shun observed with a critical eye, noting Imai's intense focus. Shota Imai was a third-year right-handed pitcher, and the number one on his back along with his confident stance radiated an aura of an ace that the entire stadium could feel.
Shun watched as Imai pitched with a quick, controlled motion, a high four-seam fastball in the zone.
WOOSH
PAH
"Strike!" - The umpire announced as the batter swung and missed, clearly late on the fastball's timing.
"That Imai is good..." - Kenta murmured after watching Imai's fastball. The ball was reaching almost 135 km/h on the stadium's speed monitor.
"Yeah..." - Shun agreed, his eyes still fixed on the field, for some reason, he felt that speed wasn't Imai's strongest point.
When the game reached the seventh inning, Kasuga made a change on the mound, surprising Shun. Shota Imai had controlled the game masterfully, allowing only three hits, yet the Kasuga coach took him out of the game. Takumi Ueda took the mound, a second-year pitcher who caught Shun's attention because he threw left-handed like him.
"Let's see how he does." - Shun leaned forward, watching the field with heightened attention.
Takumi Ueda took his position calmly on the mound and, with a fluid motion, threw a low sinker. The opposing batter hesitated for a moment before swinging, but it was too late.
WOOSH
PAH
"Strike!" - The umpire announced.
"This kid's a lefty with a sinker? That could be a problem." - Kenta said, impressed. As a left-handed batter himself, he didn't like the idea of facing a left-handed pitcher, especially one with a pitch like the sinker.
Takumi followed up with a varied sequence of pitches, using his circle changeup and slider with precision, keeping the opposing batter on edge. His sinker dropped at the last second, while the slider broke away, almost mesmerizing the batter, who ended up swinging and missing.
"Another out..." - Ren said as he watched Takumi's surprising performance on the mound.
"Slider, circle changeup, and sinker... He definitely has a different arsenal for a left-handed second-year in middle school. Looks like we'll have to watch out for him too." - Shun said in a serious tone. After all, he, Ren, and Kenta, the three best hitters on the team, were all left-handed batters and would naturally be at a disadvantage against Takumi's pitches.